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Born in 1895, Ethel Lumsdon moved to DuPont in 1927 with her husband William who worked for the DuPont Company. She lived in town for 67 years during which she was a member of the towns Garden Club and Ladies club. She also helped get the town on the National Register of Historic Places. The land the park occupies initially had garages on it but those were torn down, only leaving concrete slabs which kids would ride their bikes over. Seeing kids playing on the remains, the city elected to build a park in its place with a city councilmember suggesting to name it after longtime resident Ethel Lumsdon.

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Named after longtime resident Ethel Lumsdon. This park was recently redone with new equipment.

Ethel Lumsdon Park

Visit the historic spots in the DuPont Village

The building was built in 1910 by the DuPont Company to serve as the town’s meat market. It was run by the Carsten’s Meat Market based out of Tacoma and remained the meat market until 1950 when it was closed by the family. In 1951 the DuPont Company decided to sell the homes in the village to employees as maintaining a company town was no longer necessary with increased travel opportunities. The town was officially incorporated for the second time and the meat market was turned into the town’s city hall. Harry Robinson was voted the inaugural mayor for this new era of the town. Located beside the museum is Robinson Park, named after Mayor Robinson, who served as mayor until 1967. In 1976 the DuPont Company closed its powderworks plant to pursue other ventures. After the closure, DuPont’s City Council discussed ways to ensure the history of the plant was preserved. Councilmember Lorraine Overmyer was appointed as the lead to find the best way to do this. A formal committee was formed with Overmyer as the Chairman and Ruth Iafratti as the Asst. Chairman. During this same time city hall was moved to a building on the campus of the recently shut down Laughbon High School, leaving the old city hall vacant. The committee put in a request to the city to use it as a museum which was accepted. On June 26, 1977, the DuPont Museum was opened to the public for the first time, displaying items that were donated by people in town and former employees. The next few years were spent making the building suitable for a museum, leading to an additional room being built on the back in 1982. Also, in 1982 an official non-profit was formed that signed a memorandum of understanding with the city to run the day-to-day operation of the museum while the city would oversee building repairs.

The building was constructed in 1910 and the Carsten’s Meat Market operated there until 1951. After the closure of the market the building was repurposed as the town’s first city hall. With the closure of the DuPont Powderworks in 1976, residents wanted a way to preserve the history the company had built in the town. City Hall moved to a new building, leaving the old one vacant. The city decided to repurpose the building again, leading to the opening of the DuPont Museum in 1977.

DuPont Historical Museum

In 1997 Iafrati Park was officially named in honor of John &amp; Ruth Iafrati. John purchased this plot of land and designated it as a park for the town. Ruth was a member of the Museum Committee for twenty years and was instrumental in creating the DuPont Historical Museum, which is located one block from the park. Ruth was also instrumental to the town's historic district being listed on the National Register of Historic Places.This was also the location of the first public school in the community, known at the time as School District #7 Schoolhouse. The school district received its first state funding in 1860 and the students attended school in a private home. By 1866, 34 students were enrolled and a decision was made to build the 1866 school. The first teacher in the school was Mrs. Settle. In 1885, a replacement school was built 2 miles away on the edge of what is now Fort Lewis Golf Course.

This park was named for Mayor John Iafrati and his wife Ruth. The couple made numerous contributions to the community, and John served two terms as mayor from 1969 to 1972 and 1976 to 1979. The Park is located on 120 Barksdale Ave in front of the DuPont Company Managers' house. In 1866, the first school building in DuPont opened on land within current Iafrati Park. There is a stone monument dedicated to the school as well as a picnic area in the park.

Iafrati Park

After the DuPont Dynamite Plant was opened in 1909, the workers began construction of the town. The first house to be built was the plant managers house which stands at the entrance of the town. It is 3 stories high with a basement and sits on 2.5 acres of land. In the past there was a swimming pool in the backyard where the kids in the neighborhood would go to learned how to swim. The front porch ran across the whole front until one owner living there had a rug that didn’t fit in the living room, so he had the porch cut in half to expand the front room to accommodate the rug. In 1973 the house was set to be torn down, water had leaked from the third-floor bathroom to the ground floor and kids had thrown rocks through most of the windows. It wasn’t until the house was purchased by the Overmyer family that same year that it was saved. Please note that this is still a private residence. Please be considerate when observing.On the same street as the manager’s house, Brandywine Ave, are the homes of those who were in mid-management at the DuPont Company. It was nicknamed “Silk-Stocking Road” for their ability to afford a nicer lifestyle. The Assistant Manager’s house located at 125 Barksdale Ave, also a private residence, is also 3 stories high with a pickleball court in the backyard.

The first homes in the town of DuPont were built in 1909 were for the manager and assistant manager at the entrance of the town. Both are 3 stories high and are currently private residences.

Manager's House

The current Community Center Building in the Historic Village was built in 1910 to be a store for the town of DuPont. It was called the Fisher Store and was run by Dr. Fisher and his son. It remained in business until 1924 when the Johnson Family purchased the store. Gunnar and Heinie Johnson had previously been running their store out of the nearby Bavarian Apartments for a few years prior. Many people who lived in town have fond memories of the Johnson Brothers store, citing it as a place to talk with neighbors and discuss the latest gossip. The store carried housewares, hardware, and drugs. Later, a lunchroom, grocery, and post office were added on the store, making it even more of a community hub especially for kids who would go there to get comic books. The George Hanson Store and Restaurant were added in 1964 but by 1967 the whole building would be turned into apartments, ending an era for the community.In 1979 it changed hands again, becoming a dormitory for the Evergreen Lutheran School. This lasted until 1989 when the city purchased the building to turn it into DuPont’s City Hall and Police Station. The police station would be moved up into the old post office by the 76 gas station. In 2009 the new Civic Center was built across Center Drive from the 1843 Fort Nisqually Site. This allowed the building to be used as DuPont’s Community Center which it remains today. The cupola on top of the roof was originally from Laughbon High School which was located at Barksdale Station. When it was being torn down in 1989 parts of it were moved to the Community Center. The front doors were originally the gym doors for the school and the half-circle window was above the front door to school.The Community Center is located at 303 Barksdale Ave, the main street through the Historic Village. Along the street are multiple cherry trees that were initially planted in 1935. By 1975 many of the original trees had died so the Bicentennial Committee started a project to plant 70 new Japanese Flowering Cherry Trees. The new trees were planted on Valentines Day in 1976. In 2021 the DuPont Lions Club worked to plant new trees in the village.

This building has gone through many changes in its over 100 years of history. It started out as a general store for the community. This was a favorite spot for many in the community for several years. It also served as DuPont’s city hall for a short period before becoming a community center.

DuPont Community Center

The first church sessions held by residents of DuPont were held in the Factor’s house on the 1843 Fort Nisqually site starting in 1909. By 1914 there were 28 members of the church and during a meeting it was suggested that a building fund be started to construct an official church in DuPont. The women’s organization known as the King’s Daughters, a group formed in 1911 to aid the church and community, were instrumental in raising the money for the church. They had bake sales, bazaars, and strawberry socials to help raise money. By the fall of 1916, $4,809.06 was in the building fund and construction began. The DuPont Company donated the land for it to be built and helped with costs. On March 7, 1917, the first service in the Presbyterian Church was held.In 1917, Camp Lewis was built due to WW1 and many soldiers at the camp would come to the church for service, earning it the nickname “Campside Church.” In front of the church is a stone monument that is dedicated to the 63 men and 5 women in DuPont who served in WW2. It was dedicated in 1945 and lists the names of those who served. The original wooden board with the names is in the DuPont Museum to preserve it. The church is still in service today and it remains the only church building in DuPont.

The presbyterian church is the only church building in the city of DuPont. It was built in 1917 after a few years of fundraising by a group known as the King’s Daughters. In front of the church is a monument dedicated to each DuPont resident who served in World War 2.

Community Presbyterian Church of DuPont

Sellers Park was the first official park in DuPont, being officially created in 1981 by Mayor Pola Andre and her mayoral taskforce. The name Sellers Park comes from the nearby Sellers Lake which was named by the United States Geological Survey in the 1930s when the surveyed the land in and around DuPont. Hoffman Hills, Bell Hill and Sellers Lake were some of the locations named after military generals. People in the Historic Village wanted to call it DuPont Village Park which became its other name. In the past kids would make rafts to go out onto the lake in the summer and ice skate in the winter. Today, events are regularly held by residents of DuPont inside the park's pavilion.

This was the first sanctioned park in DuPont, being opened in 1981. This is one of the largest parks in DuPont and has been a gathering place for the community. Sellers Lake lies in the park.

Sellers Park

The DuPont Hotel was built in 1911 to provide additional housing to single workers or those who did not live in town. It was 3 stories tall with 30 rooms. Two of the suite rooms on the first floor were used as the medical office for the company town’s doctor, Dr. John Walker. Beside the hotel used to stand the DuPont Clubhouse which was built in 1910. The clubhouse provided a place for entertainment for the town with dances regularly happening in the dancehall and town dinners. There was a two-lane bowling alley which was the oldest wooden bowling alley in Washington. People in town formed bowling teams and regularly held tournaments. By 1912 the DuPont Company had an issue with employees going to Tacoma for drinks and not being able to return to work the next day so to prevent this they wanted to serve liquor in the clubhouse, but before the clubhouse could sell liquor the state required the town to incorporate which they voted to do in 1912. For 8 years the clubhouse served alcohol until prohibition came into effect. After a few years the town unincorporated until 1951 when it reincorporated. By 1930 there were more transportation options with more workers owning a card. Several boarding houses were available in town which eliminated the need for a hotel, so the company decided to tear it down. Much of the furniture was donated to Goodwill and the doctor’s office was moved to a brick house on Barksdale and Repauno.  The DuPont Company offered to sell the clubhouse to the city for $1, but because it needed maintenance, mainly a new furnace, Mayor Robinson decided not to buy it. The company decided to tear it down in 1964. A house was built in 70s where the hotel originally stood, and the rest of the land is an open field.

Built in the early days of the town, the hotel served as housing for many single employees who lived outside of DuPont. The clubhouse served as a neighborhood gathering spot for nearly 50 years, having a bowling alley and a kitchen/bar. Today a private home occupies the lot they stood on.

DuPont Hotel and Clubhouse

In 1924, Company 11 of the DuPont Fire Department was created following a grass fire that was put out by boys in the neighborhood. The department had 11 volunteers whose ages ranged from 7 to 12 with the Fire Chief only being 11 years old. The boys had four hose reel carts stationed strategically around the town. When needed for an emergency, the young men would retrieve a cart from the nearest shed and fight the fire until men working at the plant could arrive and put out the fire.When the town was incorporated for the second time in 1951 it was still a volunteer department, but it had expanded to 20 men and boys. During the 50s the fire station building was built and would receive additions throughout the years. In 1963, a fire truck was bought for $49,000 and a parking area for it was added to the building. The lunch area on the right of the building was added in the late 70s. In 2008 the fire department moved to a new building across Center Drive from the 1843 Fort Nisqually Site and the old building was converted to the town’s Public Works facility. In 2022 a new Public Works building was constructed behind the new fire department building. It remains to be seen what will be done with the old fire and public works building.

Currently used as DuPont’s Public works facility as of writing, this building was built to house the towns fire department in the 1950s. It was used as the fire station until 2008 when the new station was built in Northwest Landing.

Old DuPont Fire Station

The Plymouth locomotive was one of several narrow gauge engines used by the DuPont Company to transport dynamite and supplies from the plant to the wharf and vice versa. Rails provided a safe and reliable way of transport compared to trucks driving on pothole roads. Narrow gauge was chosen over standard gauge due to the sharp turns along the Sequalitchew Canyon. A series of electric trains were used on lines that did not change in elevation. These worked mostly in the plant with gas and diesel engines running down to the wharf.When Weyerhaeuser bought the land from the DuPont Company, the trains were a part of that sale. The Plymouth-12 engine, 2 flatcars, a boxcar, a shell crate car, and Brookville 2-ton engine were donated to the museum but they needed a place to be properly stored. Senator Mike Carrell (2004-2012) took special interest in the history of DuPont and worked hard to save the Dynamite train. Through his fundraising efforts, a canopy was able to be built behind the museum to store the train. Throughout his life Senator Carrell was a devoted supporter of preserving historical landmarks in Pierce County. This devotion saw him posthumously awarded the Heritage Advocate Award in 2015.

Next to the DuPont Museum is a Narrow Gauge train used by the DuPont Company. The train was used to transport dynamite to and from the plant and the wharf. After the closure of the plant, the Plymouth engine was stored on Ft. Lewis while a canopy was built by the museum. Former Sen. Mike Carrell (2004-2012) played a pivotal role in raising the money for the canopy.

DuPont Historic Village Walking Tour

Ethel Lumsdon Park

Introduction

Images

Backstory and Context

Additional Information